Cold Monday morning on way for Tampa Bay area

Kalisha Pupello and her son Rocco, 6, of Lutz, share some hot noodles during the 43rd Gasparilla Festival of the Arts this weekend. ANDY JONES/STAFF

By

Published: March 3, 2013

Updated: March 8, 2013 at 09:42 AM

After a breezy and cool Sunday, residents of the Tampa Bay area need to be prepared for a cold night, with a freeze warning for Citrus and Hernando counties.
Megan Hatton, meteorologist at News Channel 8, said the temperature is expected to drop to 48 by 9 p.m. Sunday, as a precursor to 30s across the northern Bay area.
The National Weather Service forecast the following lows for Monday morning:
Hillsborough: western, 41; eastern, 34.

Manatee: western, 41; eastern, 34.
Pasco: 34.
Pinellas: 46.
Polk: 35 to 37.
Sarasota: 40.
The weather service also said there will be frost in the areas away from the coast.
There is a freeze warning for Citrus and Hernando counties, according to News Channel 8 meteorologist Brooks Garner. That means there could be freezing temperatures from 1 a.m. to 10 a.m. Monday.
Students headed to school will need their jackets Monday morning when the low will only be 38, said Megan Hatton, Channel 8 meteorologist. The temperature will be even lower in the northern counties with some areas near freezing. The high is expected to be 67.
By Tuesday the highs will be back in the mid-70s thanks in part to a southern wind, and another cold front arrives Wednesday with a 20 percent chance of rain, Hatton said. Itís not all bad news, as the area should warm up for the weekend.